How to Survive in a Good Small Guild - Chapter 20

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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How to Survive in a Small Guild
Chapter 20
“Cedric! What do we do?”
The moment I called out his name again, he exchanged a few words with a merchant in front of us, pulled a pouch from his pocket, and tossed it over. Then he mounted a horse.
“…?”
Well, he certainly knows how to ride. He reached down from above and caught hold of me. Before I could protest, I found myself climbing up onto the horse with him.
“What about Susanna…!”
“I want to go too!”
With that, Susanna took a horse from the merchant and mounted it herself.
“You know how to ride?!”
“I got a sponsored trial kit when I was writing an essay!”
Impressive, really. Swaying atop the restless horse, I accepted the ledger from Cedric.
“Deputy Odret needs to analyze this. We trust only you.”
As Susanna and Cedric spurred their horses frantically to catch up with the Guild Master, I felt nausea rising in my chest.
Even so, I steadied myself and began poring over the ledger. That’s when I spotted several suspicious entries.
G-Dream Root Project — 10 million pesos
Guild Innovation Voucher — 8 million pesos
Guild Independence Hope ZERO to HERO Project — 12 million pesos
“This is…!”
I snapped my head up. I understood.
“I’ve figured it out! We just need to get there!”
“Yes! Please go faster, Susanna!”
“Roger!”
Fortunately, we reached the Guild Administration Office in no time. The Guild Master took the main road, but we cut through the narrow passages — we had to be faster.
We burst into the office, and I flipped through the ledger, waving the pages for emphasis.
“Look at this!”
“What’s that?”
Susanna didn’t understand, but Cedric, who seemed to have grasped it as well, cried out.
“Government Support Project funding!”
“Government support… what?”
“Yes, this must be a government program to fund small guilds.”
“The Guild Master probably received money from this project and embezzled it!”
“Whoa, how did you figure that out?”
In response to Susanna’s question, I answered as though it were obvious.
“Simple — you can tell just by looking at these gaudy names!”
“I’ve heard of government support projects… Wait, did you just say gaudy?”
“Of course. Imperial programs are notorious for having tacky names. Look at this: ZERO to HERO? What in the world is that supposed to be?”
“…I see your point.”
Cedric’s face fell somewhat, but I paid it no mind.
“And the guild name itself is bizarre! Global Information Network Guild! They shoehorned in every trendy word the government loves just to qualify for the funding!”
“Ah, that makes sense! Why does the government love those words so much?”
“Governments are just naturally tacky, I suppose. Anyway, he must have embezzled the money from these programs! Let’s dig deeper!”
As a result, we uncovered suspicious expenditures in the ledger.
“What’s this? ‘Stress Management Training’ — 3 million pesos spent?”
“Translation services — 4 million pesos. When did we ever hire translators?”
“Tax consultant — 6 million pesos! That’s ridiculous! I’ve done every calculation myself all this time!”
This was more than enough grounds to remove the Guild Master. Above all, since this was an embezzlement of government funds, even the Temple would have difficulty overlooking it.
“What the—!”
Then, behind us, I heard the Guild Master’s voice again. He had also arrived at the Administration Office, having come by carriage.
But we were faster. Our number had already been called from the Number Ticket that Cedric had drawn earlier.
“Number 189!”
The moment the clerk’s voice rang out, Cedric grabbed the ledger and bolted forward like a bullet.
“I’m filing a report!”
“What? I… what are you…”
“Embezzlement! I’m reporting embezzlement of government guild funds!”
“You dare—!”
The Guild Master rushed at Cedric, but he paid no heed and shouted on.
“G-Dream Root Project! Guild Innovation Voucher! Guild Independence Hope ZERO to HERO! Embezzlement report!”
Wow, how did Cedric manage to memorize all those garish project names?
“This is unjust! Please correct it!”
In an instant, I watched the Guild Administration Office buzz with activity as staff members flocked in, and I smiled.
Farewell, Guild Master! I really should release some stress-relief balloons to celebrate this!
And so the Guild Master underwent an audit. The Guild was chaotic for several days, but we were able to dismiss him directly.
“You can’t do this! Even if you fire me, this guild building is mine!”
“Wasn’t this guild building funded through the G-Dream Root Project?”
Cedric, who seemed to take a keen interest in tacky government support initiatives, answered with a cool demeanor.
“This guild building is an asset that belongs to the guild as a corporate entity, not to the Guild Master personally.”
“But surely there’s a severance package—!”
“Oh my, what are you talking about? We’re a workplace with fewer than five employees, so there’s no such thing!”
Apparently eager to mimic that particular tone, Susanna waved her hands fluttering at the Guild Master.
After the Guild Master was dismissed, Susanna and Cedric signed the papers making me the new Guild Master.
But naturally, this was far from the end of it all.
Because the remaining task was to report the full circumstances of the incident to the Temple and receive authorization for my appointment as the new Guild Master.
***
Well, at least I’ve managed to avoid the dark future that loomed in the original story….
Inside the carriage heading to the Temple, I sat alone with my thoughts.
Susanna had come along to testify, but she was busy head-banging while listening to a portable phonograph by herself. She really is consistent….
‘So with this, I won’t end up in prison, will I?’
Once I became Guild Master, my superior would effectively disappear. Whatever orders came from the Temple, I would have the freedom to maneuver as I saw fit.
And with better access to Temple information, I could provide even more intelligence to the Crown Prince.
I thought back on Odret Lavendel, who was merely an extra in the original story. Her dialogue seemed to amount to only about ten lines total, and half of those were just “I’ve brought the materials,” “I found out,” and “I’ll report this.”
And then at the end, after it was revealed that she was a spy for the Temple, she fell into despair….
‘Ah, that was in there.’
The reason Odret Lavendel acted as a spy for the Temple in the original story was also quite absurd.
Odret Lavendel had a man she loved, and she had to make that choice to protect him.
‘Well, unlike the original Odret Lavendel, I have no intention of leisurely filming a romance movie with anyone here.’
Moreover, the “man that Odret loved” depicted in the story was a commoner with black hair and brown eyes.
According to the color-matching rules of romance fantasy, he probably wasn’t an ordinary man, but I apologize to Odret—as long as I have the goal of survival, I have no intention of falling for a man.
Lost in such thoughts about the original story, the carriage came to a stop.
“Deputy Manager Odret, or should I say Guild Master now? We’ve arrived at the Temple!”
“Please still call me Deputy Manager for now. I don’t know what objections someone might raise.”
I looked at the entrance to the Temple the way one might regard the gates of the demon realm. Since we were not insiders to the Temple, we had to use the South Gate.
Ah, the memory of the all-nighter I pulled here last time still lingers in my mind….
As we waited at the South Gate as previously arranged by letter, the intermediate priest Charles whom I had seen before appeared.
“So, Miss Lavendel? And this one is….”
“Susanna Herb.”
“Miss Herb.”
Damn it, why does he only forget my name properly!
Because of what happened last time, I harbored strong resentment toward Priest Charles, but I had to suppress it and maintain a composed facade.
“So the previous Guild Master committed embezzlement?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“Let’s hear about it inside. Though I’m not sure if it will be worth listening to.”
Watching Priest Charles walk ahead of us with his infuriating gait, I gritted my teeth. Somehow, I would bring him down too.
“This guy’s annoying. He gives off the impression he’ll take out his frustration on someone younger and lower-ranking than him because he’s losing ground among the other priests.”
Susanna whispered in the tiniest voice from beside me, and I found myself in complete agreement with her.
But somehow I had to get past this hurdle to be recognized as Guild Master.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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